Prudential Financial Inc. Has $28.09 Million Stake in Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI)

Prudential Financial Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 417,105 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 56,350 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Donaldson were worth $28,092,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Donaldson by 43.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Donaldson by 89.6% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Donaldson by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 45.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in Donaldson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $91,000. 82.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Trudy A. Rautio sold 14,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.60, for a total transaction of $946,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,785,992. This trade represents a 34.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President Thomas R. Scalf sold 29,500 shares of Donaldson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.89, for a total transaction of $2,032,255.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 28,334 shares in the company, valued at $1,951,929.26. This trade represents a 51.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 72,000 shares of company stock worth $4,951,425. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Donaldson Price Performance

DCI opened at $68.32 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $69.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $71.64. Donaldson Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.10 and a twelve month high of $78.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.86, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.04.

Donaldson (NYSE:DCI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.02). Donaldson had a return on equity of 29.07% and a net margin of 11.56%. The company had revenue of $870.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $908.32 million. Equities analysts expect that Donaldson Company, Inc. will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Donaldson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Donaldson’s payout ratio is currently 31.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on DCI shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Donaldson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Donaldson from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Donaldson from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.00.

Donaldson Profile

Donaldson Company, Inc manufactures and sells filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Mobile Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Life Sciences. Its Mobile Solutions segment provides replacement filters for air and liquid filtration applications, such as air filtration systems; liquid filtration systems for fuel, lube, and hydraulic applications; exhaust and emissions systems and sensors; indicators; and monitoring systems.